US5523560A - Method and apparatus for inspecting liquid-filled containers - Google Patents

Method and apparatus for inspecting liquid-filled containers Download PDF

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US5523560A
US5523560A US08/350,757 US35075794A US5523560A US 5523560 A US5523560 A US 5523560A US 35075794 A US35075794 A US 35075794A US 5523560 A US5523560 A US 5523560A
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Prior art keywords
container
liquid
entity
rotation
radiation
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Flemming Manique
Tommy Martinussen
Gert Nielsen
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Novo Nordisk AS
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Novo Nordisk AS
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    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01N—INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
    • G01N21/00—Investigating or analysing materials by the use of optical means, i.e. using sub-millimetre waves, infrared, visible or ultraviolet light
    • G01N21/84—Systems specially adapted for particular applications
    • G01N21/88—Investigating the presence of flaws or contamination
    • G01N21/90—Investigating the presence of flaws or contamination in a container or its contents
    • G01N21/9018—Dirt detection in containers
    • G01N21/9027—Dirt detection in containers in containers after filling
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01N—INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
    • G01N33/00—Investigating or analysing materials by specific methods not covered by groups G01N1/00 - G01N31/00
    • G01N33/0078—Testing material properties on manufactured objects
    • G01N33/0081—Containers; Packages; Bottles

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for inspecting entities comprising liquid-filled containers for one or more test parameters of the liquid, the container, or both, by rotating and axially line scanning said entities and comparing said scans electronically, after which defective entities, i.e. entities for which one or more test parameters fall outside the approved ranges are identified and separated from non-defective entities, i.e. entities for which all test parameters fall within the approved ranges.
  • the method and apparatus for inspecting liquid-filled containers for rejection or approval according to the present invention is useful in e.g. the quality control of cartridges or vials containing liquid pharmaceuticals or other liquids.
  • a method and apparatus for reliable inspection of several test parameters simultaneously including both stationary and dynamic type parameters of the entity to be inspected, i.e. the liquid, the container, or both, is of particular value in fast control of large batches of entities particularly when a high throughput, a high probability of rejecting defective entities, and a low probability of rejecting non-defective entities is required.
  • line scanning is intended to designate the collection of information from a line of segments on the container, including information from the liquid, the container, or both, each individual segment being scanned successively using a selfscanning linear CCD array.
  • Lines of segments may be axial or non-axial related to the axis of rotation of the entity to be inspected depending on the relationship between the rate of rotation and the scanning rate of individual segments.
  • test parameters is intended to designate measured parameters which reflect the quality of each entity to be inspected in such a way that their outcome results in either rejection or approval of the inspected entity.
  • test parameters are parameters for detection of unacceptable defects such as dirt and cracks; amount of liquid, presence of air, concentration of solutes, presence of foreign particles and bodies, and the like.
  • the expression "stationary parameters” is intended to designate parameters that do not change during rotation, e.g. parameters that are associated with the container such as the shape of the container, the cap, the amount of liquid, etc. Inspection of these parameters is designated “container inspection”.
  • the expression “dynamic parameters” is intended to designate parameters that change during rotation, e.g. parameters that are associated with movable foreign bodies such as suspended particles and impurities in the liquid. Inspection of these parameters is designated “foreign body detection”.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 3,598,907 discloses object inspection by successively televised images wherein successive images of a rotating object are compared electronically to generate an error signal whenever the difference between successive images does not fall within a predetermined range.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 3,777,169 discloses a method and means based on rotation for detecting foreign particles in liquid-filled containers by means of a video camera capable of generating several video voltage patterns or frames.
  • the apparatus are based on a video or analog sensing mechanism such as a conventional television camera which usually generates a surplus of data.
  • a video or analog sensing mechanism such as a conventional television camera which usually generates a surplus of data.
  • the frame rate of a television camera is very low (20 Hz) which creates aberration of a fast rotating particle and results in low sensitivity.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 4,136,930 discloses a method and apparatus based on rotation for a high-speed in-line bottle inspection apparatus comprising several television cameras for detecting foreign particles in full bevarage containers moving along a conveyor. Besides foreign particle detection the apparatus may be used for detecting proper fill levels of containers, detecting the proper content of pallets or cases for warehouse control, container identification, bottle sorting and other optical comparisons of which none are disclosed.
  • the accuracy of detection is reduced due to electrical differences and misalignment errors between the cameras placed at different places in space and images obtained at different times.
  • German Laid-Open Application No. 2820661 A1 discloses a foreign body detection apparatus based on rotation that is independent of the particle con-figuration but which does not provide for other test parameters. Further, this known apparatus uses a collimated light source and detector apparatus for projecting the particle onto the sensor. Thus, this technique is not applicable for light-scattering liquids such as suspensions or emulsions in which cases the probability of rejecting defective entities becomes unacceptable low.
  • test parameters e.g. dirt, cracks, false or foreign liquid, presence of air on top of the liquid, concentration of solutes or disperse phase, and foreign bodies like suspended particles and impurities
  • the invention provides a method and an apparatus for simultaneously inspecting an entity comprising a liquid-filled container for one or more test parameters of the liquid, the container, or both, wherein the entity is rotated according to a predetermined rate profile and simultaneously submitted to axial line scanning, the data recorded during the scanning being analysed.
  • said analysis of scanned data comprises image analysis of the unfolded image consisting of scans of the desired part of the surface of the container, and in foreign body inspection, according to the invention, said analysis of scanned data comprises analysis of successive scans of the contents of the container.
  • an unfolded image of stationary parameters may comprise an electronic representation of pixel values obtained from individual line scans during one or more 360 degrees revolutions of the rotating container, i.e. one dimension of the image being the height and the other the perimeter of the container; and an unfolded image of dynamic parameters may comprise an electronic representation of pixel values obtained at different times, i.e. the one dimension of the image being the height of the container and the other the time at which the same individual segment of the container was scanned.
  • an unfolded image of the container may be provided by rotating the container either stepwise or continuously according to a predetermined rate profile which optionally has one or more periods of constant angular velocities during the inspection, and scanning the rotating container at a suitable scanning rate.
  • the rotation is chosen to be stepwise such that each individual segment of the container can be scanned for a sufficiently long time to provide the required resolution of the unfolded image.
  • a whole line of segments parallel to the axis of rotation may be scanned within an incremental step of the angular rotation.
  • non-parallel e.g. helix type scanning may be applied to unfold a container image at relatively higher rates of rotation provided each individual scanned segment of the container can be unambiguously retrieved.
  • optional periods of constant angular velocity generally occur at rotation rates below 2000 rpm, particularly below 1500 rpm, preferably about 1200 rpm.
  • rates of angular rotation and scanning rates of the detection apparatus are chosen such that line scans may be provided at relatively high rates of rotation of the entity to be inspected. During these high rates of rotation line scans are provided differentially such that individual segments are scanned successively at given hights during one or more revolutions.
  • the rate profile comprises rates of rotation that causes the liquid to circulate and bodies having densities larger than that of the liquid to accumulate at the container wall.
  • detection of foreign bodies in the liquid having densities larger than that of the liquid is performed while the liquid is rotating at a rate from about 10000 rpm to about 2000 rpm, preferably from about 9000 rpm to about 7000 rpm, most preferred about 8000 rpm.
  • the rotation of the container is stopped and the entity is scanned before the rotation of the liquid is substantially reduced.
  • the total inspection time, including the scanning is less than 1000 ms, preferably less than 500 ms, most preferred about 250 ms.
  • line scans may be provided "differentially in time” for given segments of the container by successive measurements of the same container segments but different segments of the rotating liquid.
  • line scans may be provided "differentially in distance” for different segments of the perimeter by successive measurements of different container segments at different times.
  • the entity is irradiated with electromagnetic radiation and the transmitted, reflected, diffracted or scattered radiation is detected at an angle from about 90 to about 180 degrees, preferably about 120 degrees, relative to the incident radiation.
  • the transmitted, reflected, diffracted or scattered radiation is retro-reflected into the direction opposite of the incident radiation.
  • the retro-reflected radiation is reflected out of the incident direction by means of a semi-transparent and reflecting mirror.
  • the transmitted, reflected diffracted or scattered radiation is detected by a linear array of radiation dectors and stored digitally, preferably in a frame store memory and a matrix filter.
  • analysis of recorded data comprises electronic comparison of actual pixel values or manipulated pixel values, e.g. values of individual pixels or values of groups of pixels that may be transformed by multiplication, addition, subtraction, or other transformations such as logaritms, means and standard deviations.
  • individual pixels i.e. pixel addresses, are chosen and their values applied for the comparison.
  • individual pixels and groups of pixels are selected to analyse recorded data of one or more test parameters of the liquid and the container, respectively.
  • liquid specification including amount and intended content, concentration of components, colour, transmittance, and mixer ball;
  • foreign matter including foreign liquids and bodies, suspended particles, impurities and undesired flocculation, growth of crystals and biological organisms.
  • test parameters of the container are selected from the groups consisting of:
  • container specification including shape, bottom, cap, labels, bar code, plunger, fill level, colour and transmittance;
  • container defects including flaws, cracks, air bubbles and particles entrapped in the container wall, and weakenings
  • container contamination including dirt and dust, material entrapped between the plunger and container wall.
  • an inspected entity exhibiting one or more unacceptable test parameters of the liquid, the container, or both is identified and separated from containers having acceptable test parameters.
  • the invention provides an apparatus for inspecting an entity comprising a liquid-filled container for one or more test parameters of the liquid, the container, or both, by rotating and axially line scanning said container which may be liquid-filled, i.e. the entity to be inspected, and comparing said scans electronically comprising rotating means, irradiating means, detection means, and electronic digital filtering and comparison means.
  • Means of rotating the entity to be inspected comprise any means suitable for effecting either stepwise or continuous rotation.
  • a micro-processor controlled stepper motor stepping a predefined incremental angle of rotation synchronically with the scanning of the container is preferred.
  • a presently preferred program comprises accelerating the entity to be inspected until a first constant rate of rotation at which the container and liquid are inspected for stationary parameters, said rate of rotation having a constant angular velocity. Depending on the scanning rate of the detection means and the required resolution, this inspection is performed at rotation rates generally below 2000 rpm, particularly below 1500 rpm, preferably about 1200 rpm. Further, the program comprises rotating, e.g. accelerating or decelerating, the entity to be inspected to a second, or optionally a third, a fourth, and so on, rate of rotation at which the container and liquid may be inspected for dynamic parameters, e.g. foreign bodies.
  • the rotation of the container is stopped prior to inspection for dynamic parameters of the liquid.
  • rate profiles comprise intervals during which the liquid continues to circulate while the container is at rest.
  • the micro-processor is programmed to decelerate the rotation of the container generally in less than 500 ms, particularly less than 100 ms, preferably in the range 20-80 ms.
  • rotation means comprise a programmable stepper motor, preferably a low inertia stepper motor, programmed to provide a predefined rate profile over the total time of inspection and to stop the rotation generally in less than 500 ms, preferably in less than 100 ms, particularly in the range of 20-80 ms.
  • the inspection apparatus comprises means of irradiating the entity to be inspected by a suitable electromagnetic radiation of any suitable wavelength acceptable to the liquid and container, and means for detecting the transmitted, reflected, diffracted or scattered radiation.
  • the irradiation means comprises:
  • a dc-powered light source or a synchronized stroboscobic light source, preferably a stabilized tungsten light source
  • fiber optical light guides preferably glass fibers, arranged in a long narrow line of width approximately 1.0 mm and of length corresponding to the full axial length of the container.
  • the transmitted or scattered radiation from the irradiated entity to be inspected is detected by detection means comprising an optical lens imaging the transmitted or scattered radiation, from preferably a narrow, e.g. 50 ⁇ m wide, vertical line segment of the container, onto a linear array of imaging photodetectors containing anywhere from 32 to 10000 elements, preferably a linear CCD- or PCCD-array having 1024 pixels of 14 ⁇ 14 ⁇ m, i.e. CCD-devices (charge coupled devices), or PCCD-devices (programable charge coupled devices). Particularly preferred devices are linear CCD- or PCCD-arrays of high resolution.
  • the detection means comprise means for line scanning the pixels of the CCD-array serially, i.e. accessing the radiation sensitive elements sequentially, preferably every 200 ⁇ s, and by an analog video processing transforming an analog pixel value to a digital representation to be stored in a frame store memory or manipulated otherwise e.g. by digital filtering.
  • the detection means further comprises means for transforming the analog pixel value to a digital value.
  • Colour recognition may be applied via the use of colour-CCD linescanners having optical interference filters integrated directly on the line-scan CCD sensor chip. Therefore, in another preferred embodiment, three trigger controlled stroboscobic light sources are used each filtered for a red, green and blue output, and all feeding their output into the same fibre bundle guiding light to the container to be inspected. Three successive line-scans with respectively the red, green and blue sources illuminating the container facilitates a full colour image to be gathered, giving colour information on both the container and its contents.
  • line scans are compared via comparison of actual or manipulated pixel values which comparison may be obtained by suitable electronic digital filtering and comparison means known per se.
  • means of digital filtering comprises a digital matrix filter having filter coefficients loadable from software which matrix filter can be in the form of integrated circuits, or consist of conventional electronics comprising e.g. cascade shift registers, multipliers, substractors, accumulators, etc. known to a person skilled in the art.
  • electronic comparison means comprises a frame store memory known per se which memory is computer controlled to store a complete unfolded image of the entity to be inspected, and the data of which may be processed by an image processing computer.
  • the electronic comparison means comprises a digital matrix filter and/or a frame store memory.
  • distinction between dynamic parameters of the liquid and static parameters of the container wall can be provided by stopping the rotation of the entity to be inspected and scanning the entity while the liquid is still rotating at an almost unchanged predetermined rate.
  • stopping of the rotation of the container may be avoided.
  • the optical inspection apparatus can further comprise retro-reflection means to reflect the transmitted and scattered radiation retro-reflectively, approximately along the same path as the incident radiation but in the opposite direction.
  • the vibrating or oscillating movements as well as the distribution of the refractive index in both the container wall and the liquid can be considered static within the propagation time of the incident and retro-reflected light.
  • a "liquid-filled container" to be inspected may comprise any container that is transparent to the electromagnetic radiation applied; particularly preferred transparent containers are cartridges, ampoules, vials, and capsules, produced from materials normally intended for containing pharmaceutical liquids, e.g. glass or plastic.
  • liquids designates any liquids, mixtures, solutions, suspensions, colloidal dispersions, emulsions, etc., organic or inorganic; particularly pharmaceutical liquids comprising micro'suspensions such as insulin.
  • inspection designates the acts of inspecting an object for certain predefined quality assurance parameters for example in order to comply with rules of good manufacturing practice and warrants of products.
  • test parameters for containers are not restricted to "presence of” or "absence of”, but generally comprise a reproducible measurement that can be calculated from the unfolded image, the result being compared to the tolerance allowed for the particular test parameter, and subsequently used for an accept/reject decision.
  • text recognition can be applied to ensure correct labeling.
  • the present invention provides the possibility of applying a single line scanning apparatus for both classes of parameters. This possibility is surprisingly achieved through the combination of rotation schemes, according to the invention, and the line scanning apparatus providing for an unfolded image of the container and its contents.
  • entities that have been inspected for one or more test parameters may be identified as unacceptable when a test parameter turns out to be outside the predefined range for acceptable values.
  • the inspection apparatus further comprises means of identifying unacceptable entities.
  • identification of unacceptable entities can be based on the output signals of the digital filtering and comparison means, e.g. the output of the digital matrix filter or the output of the image processing computer having processed the data of the frame store memory.
  • the inspection apparatus comprises means for separating entities identified as unacceptable from approved entities.
  • such means of rejecting unacceptable entities comprises electronic and mechanical means of separating said unacceptable entities from accepted entities.
  • the computer may store information about the type of parameter on the basis of which the rejection took place, thereby making it easier for the operator to identify the reason for a possible rise in the number of rejections.
  • FIG. 1 shows a liquid-filled container to be inspected according to a preferred embodiment
  • FIG. 2 shows a cross-section along the line II--II of FIG. 1;
  • FIGS. 3A-D show examples of rate profiles of the rotation
  • FIG. 4 shows an unfolded image of the container shown in FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 5A illustrates the pixel values along the line VA--VA in FIG. 4;
  • FIG. 5B illustrates the pixel values along the line VB--VB in FIG. 4;
  • FIG. 6 shows a diagram of a setup according to a preferred embodiment for container inspection and particle detection
  • FIG. 7A shows a diagram of the apparatus for foreign body detection
  • FIG. 7B shows a top view of a detail of the apparatus of FIG. 7A.
  • FIG. 8 shows a diagram of the apparatus for container inspection.
  • a liquid-filled cylindrical container e.g. an insulin cartridge, comprising a container body 11 and a suspension 12 in which foreign bodies 13 may be distributed.
  • the container contains a plunger 14, a mixer ball 15, and a rubber membrane (not shown) fixed to the container by means of a cap 16.
  • the entity to be inspected 10 is rotated about its longitudinal axis of rotation 17 and inspected in a linear field of inspection 18 which covers the desired section of the entity to be inspected.
  • FIG. 2 there is illustrated a cross-section along the line II--II of FIG. 1 illustrating the foreign bodies 13 accumulated and rotating in a well-defined manner close to the container wall at the time of inspection. Contrary to this, prior art techniques inspect for randomly distributed foreign bodies 13 not rotating close to the container wall, and thus are only applicable for transparent liquids.
  • FIGS. 3A-D there are shown examples of rate profiles which illustrate the presently preferred continuous rate profiles.
  • the container is accelerated until a predetermined constant rate of rotation is obtained, as illustrated by the plateau.
  • this constant rate of rotation line scans for container inspection are performed.
  • the entity to be inspected is accelerated to higher rates of rotation until a maximum value, after which the acceleration of the container is stopped and the container is decelerated before differential line scanning for detection of foreign bodies in the liquid. Acceleration for an optional repetition of the differential line scanning may follow immediately, or later, e.g. in another optical configuration.
  • the rotation for differential line scanning is provided, and may be repeated, before the container inspection is performed, i.e. the sequence of FIG. 1A is inverted. Also, for certain applications either the container inspection or the foreign body detection may be performed alone or in any other suitable sequences.
  • the sequence of foreign body detection is provided at different maximum rates of rotation in order to differentiate between foreign bodies e.g. bodies of different size, shape, or density.
  • FIG. 3D illustrates a rate profile applicable for a apparatus based on retro-reflection of the transmitted and scattered radiation, in which case the rotation is not stopped between repeated inspections for foreign bodies.
  • FIG. 4 shows the two-dimensional projection of the unfolded image of the container shown in FIG. 1 with the height h of the container along the ordinate and the perimeter p as shown enlarged corresponding to the angle of rotation along the abscissa. For each coordinate, there is an associated pixel value.
  • FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B the pixel values are illustrated for given perimeters A and B corresponding to the scans along the lines VA--VA and VB--VB of FIG. 4.
  • image analysis is based on inspection windows ⁇ , ⁇ , ⁇ og ⁇ that are defined as showed in FIG. 4 in order to provide container inspection for e.g. skewness of the cap, presence of the mixer ball, and air under the cap.
  • the threshold X is defined as as 90% of the full signal; the threshold Y is defined as a portion of a reference R1 determined as the mean of all pixel values within the window ⁇ ; and the threshold Z as a portion of a reference R2 determined as the mean of all pixel values within the window ⁇ .
  • skewness of the cap can be detected by comparing for each line scan the pixels of the window G with the threshold Z starting from the cap.
  • Z is exceeded, the height is stored in a memory, and comparison of the minimum and maximum heights of all scans provides a measure of the skewness of the cap.
  • the container may be rejected.
  • the transmission of the liquid may increase, and the threshold X may be exceeded. Summing up all pixel values may provide a measure of the projected area of air.
  • the transmission through the window ⁇ may increase.
  • the total mixer ball area projected can be measured by summing up all pixel values within the ⁇ -window that exceed the Y-threshold. The distinction between none, one or more mixer balls is then provided by a criterion which is based on the area ranges provided by the corresponding number of mixer balls.
  • FIG. 6 a preferred embodiment, 600, of the apparatus for inspecting both the container and its contents is illustrated.
  • Two identical light apparatus 610 and 620 having stabilized dc-powered tungsten light sources 611, 621, infra red filtres 612, 622, and fiber optical light guides having cross-sectional converters 613, 623 are provided for.
  • For non-transparent liquids only light apparatus 610 is applied.
  • the switch 650 is in the position providing foreign body detection by collecting lenses 631, 641, detection means 632, 642 and part of the electronics 660 (see FIG. 7A), and part of the electronics 670 (see FIG. 8).
  • both light apparatus 610 and 620, and detection means 632 and 642 may generally be applied with the switch 650 in the position shown. Additionally, an external diffusor 680 may be necessary between the light apparatus 620 and the container 10 particularly for transparent liquids.
  • the light apparatus 610, the collecting lense 641, and the detection means 642 are omitted, and signals from the detection means 632 are routed to the electronics for both the container inspection and foreign body inspection by the switch 650.
  • the inspection apparatus comprises a low inertia stepper motor 705 (see FIG. 7A and FIG. 8), e.g. an Escap P42.
  • FIG. 7A and 7B illustrate a preferred embodiment of an apparatus, 700, for inspecting e.g. a suspension-filled container for dynamic parameters. Particularly, FIG. 7A illustrates the foreign body detection part of the electronics.
  • FIG. 7A light from a stabilized dc-powered tungsten lamp 611 is filtered through an infra red filter 612 for removal of wavelengths longer than aproximately 1000 nm. Via a fiber optical light guide 613 the filtered light is directed to a cross-sectional converter 614 converting a circular cross-section to a rectangular cross-section.
  • the output geometry of the converter 614 is provided by a glass fiber bundle confined in an aluminium block and has a width of about 1.0 mm and a height corresponding to the height of the entity 10 to be inspected.
  • the converter 614 can be provided with collimator and aperture means.
  • the light guide output is directed towards the entity to be inspected at an angle of 90 to 120 degrees relative to the optical axis of the imaging apparatus, i.e. a collecting lense 631 and a detection means 632, e.g. a linear array such as Toshiba TCD 107, as shown in top view in FIG. 7B.
  • a collecting lense 631 and a detection means 632 e.g. a linear array such as Toshiba TCD 107, as shown in top view in FIG. 7B.
  • a detection means 632 e.g. a linear array such as Toshiba TCD 107
  • the apparatus 700 comprises a low inertia stepper motor 705 for rotating the entity to be inspected.
  • This motor can very rapidly accelerate the entity to be inspected to high rates of rotation and decelerate the rotation within a very short time.
  • the deceleration from about 9000 rpm to zero can take place in less than 60 ms.
  • Any solids in the container such as foreign bodies, particles, or a mixer ball having a density larger than the liquid will accumulate at the inside of the container wall.
  • the extremely short deceleration time ensures that the circulating liquid continues its rotation in a circular laminar flow during the inspection of the liquid immediately after the container has stopped its rotation.
  • a longer deceleration time would result in the flow breaking into a turbulent flow which would cause said foreign bodies to move into the bulk of the liquid before the container had stopped and thus become undetectable. Also, in the case of transparent liquids, foreign bodies moving into the bulk of the liquid may come out of the focus of the optics, and thus may not be detected.
  • the electronics part of the apparatus comprises an analog video processing board 708 containing circuitry to accept unprocessed analog pixel values from the detection means 632 and transform it to a series of digital pixel data, each represented by an 8 bit word.
  • a CCD or PCCD sequencer board 709 comprises high-speed high current drivers, clocks and sequencing electronics familiar to a person skilled in the art to facilitate a high pixel rate (5 MHz) without sacrificing precision in the restoration of the analog pixel information.
  • a high-speed stepper motor controller 710 provides a high rate of rotation of the entity 10 to be inspected, e.g. 9000 rpm, and a very precisely controlled deceleration of the container within a short time, e.g. less than 60 ms, for foreign body detection of the liquid.
  • the controller 710 For container inspection, the controller 710 provides an accurate and precise rate of rotation of e.g. about 1200 rpm.
  • a main controller 711 provides the actions necessary to inspect the liquid for foreign bodies and other irregularities.
  • the controller 711 and the analog video board 708 provides control signals (A) and (B), respectively, to the electronics part for container inspection (see FIG. 8).
  • the electronics for detection of foreign bodies form a universal digital matrix filter, where filter coefficients are loadable from software. This facilitates setting filter characteristics, which will enable detection of foreign bodies circulating in the suspension with maximun sensitivity, without being disturbed by the likewise circulating mixer ball. To the applicants' knowledge no other apparatus has this facility. Known apparatus would instead detect the mixer ball as being an undesired foreign body.
  • the digital matrix filter consists of cascade shift registers 712-716 having lenghts corresponding to the number of pixels in the linear array of the detection means 632.
  • each register constitutes one full line scan having an 8-bit representation of the corresponding pixel value in each cell.
  • Multipliers 717-721 provide multiplication of individual coefficients to the pixel values of the shift registers, which coefficients are loaded from the controller 711.
  • a summing network 722 computes the sum of the results of multiplications by the multipliers 717-721 which multipliers may scale the s results depending on the dynamic behaviour of the fluid being inspected.
  • a numerical subtractor 723 computes numerical differences between the summed output of the summing network 722 and the pixel value present at the output of 714.
  • a threshold register 724 i.e. a loadable shift register to be loaded by the controller 711, contains one full line scan of threshold values. Each threshold value is clocked out of the register syncronically with the result of the numerical subtractor 723, and recycled into itself.
  • the contents of the threshold register 724 is adaptable, and may depend on the shape of the curvature of the collecting lens 632, and optical aberrations from the glas container 10.
  • a comparator 725 compares pixel thresholds of the threshold register 724 with the filtered pixel values of the numerical subtractor 723, and provides a logical outputsignal, when the numerical subtractor 723 provides a signal larger than the threshold register 724.
  • a gate 726 controlled by the controller 711 determines that the output signal from the comparator 725 is valid, e.g. only when the rotation of the container has been stopped, and a certain predetermined time has elapsed, during which the liquid continues to rotate at a high rate.
  • the digital matrix filter may consist of an integrated circuit, e.g. INMOS IMS A110.
  • each line scan of successive line scans can be filtered by more filters each optimized for detection of preferred types of foreign bodies, e.g. small, large, thin or thick particles consisting of glass, metal, or hair.
  • the signal of the register 715 may be routed to a second set of shift registers having another set of multipliers providing different individual coefficients to the pixel values.
  • FIG. 8 there is illustrated a diagram of a preferred embodiment 800 of the apparatus of the electronics part for container inspection. Particularly, FIG. 8 illustrates the container inspection part of the electronics.
  • Numerals 611-709 designate components which are similar to the components designated by the same numerals in FIGS. 6 and 7A.
  • the switch 810 selects the line scan depending on the optical configuration chosen as described for FIG. 6.
  • line scans (B) from the optical configuration shown in FIG. 7A may be selected.
  • a frame store 811 e.g. Scan Beam SB1024, is loaded with an unfolded image of the container to be inspected. The size and resolution of the stored image depends on the dimensions of the container and on the details inspected for.
  • the number of rows in the frame store 811 is equal to the number of pixels of the linear array 632 whereas the number of columns depends on the inspection to be performed. Typically, however, the standard number of columns, i.e. from 128 to 1024 or higher, are used.
  • the pixel values are stored as 8-bit words.
  • a synchronizing and timing unit 812 receives input (A) from the controller 711 shown in FIG. 7A when the rate of rotation of the container has reached a predetermined level that is used for obtaining and loading a new image in the frame store 811.
  • the image processing computer 813 which is programmed to perform the necessary processing on the image stored in the frame store 811, is informed that a new image is ready for processing.
  • the result of the inspection is a signal for accepting or rejecting the entity to be inspected.
  • cylindrical cartridges were filled or partly filled with an insulin micro-suspension (50 ⁇ m particles), and intentionally provided with various defects of either the container or the liquid in order to simulate different defects, and subjected to container inspection and foreign body detection.
  • an insulin micro-suspension 50 ⁇ m particles
  • the cartridges were subjected to container inspection at a rotation rate of 1200 rpm and line scanned to provide images of 1024 rows and 256 columns. The images were then analysed for the test parameters of skewness of the cap, air under cap, and presence of a transparent mixer ball. In all cases the different types of defects were detected correctly.
  • the filter matrix of a digital matrix filter, IMS A 110, INMOS, corresponding to the loadable filter coefficients for the multipliers 718-720 for the shift registers 713 of 715 of the digital matrix filter in FIG. 7 were varied according to Table 3.

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  • Immunology (AREA)
  • Pathology (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Food Science & Technology (AREA)
  • Medicinal Chemistry (AREA)
  • Investigating Materials By The Use Of Optical Means Adapted For Particular Applications (AREA)
  • Sampling And Sample Adjustment (AREA)
  • Examining Or Testing Airtightness (AREA)
  • Filling Or Discharging Of Gas Storage Vessels (AREA)
  • Manufacture Of Motors, Generators (AREA)
  • Filling Of Jars Or Cans And Processes For Cleaning And Sealing Jars (AREA)
  • Devices For Use In Laboratory Experiments (AREA)
  • Glass Compositions (AREA)
  • Analysing Materials By The Use Of Radiation (AREA)
US08/350,757 1991-02-01 1994-12-07 Method and apparatus for inspecting liquid-filled containers Expired - Lifetime US5523560A (en)

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DK017791A DK17791D0 (da) 1991-02-01 1991-02-01 Beholderinspektion
DK0177/91 1991-02-01
PCT/DK1992/000032 WO1992014142A1 (en) 1991-02-01 1992-01-30 A method and apparatus for inspecting liquid-filled containers
US9014693A 1993-09-07 1993-09-07
US08/350,757 US5523560A (en) 1991-02-01 1994-12-07 Method and apparatus for inspecting liquid-filled containers

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JP (1) JP3193377B2 (no)
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EP0569464B1 (en) 1995-04-26
JP3193377B2 (ja) 2001-07-30
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CA2100776A1 (en) 1992-08-02
DE69202242D1 (de) 1995-06-01
HUT70248A (en) 1995-09-28
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EP0569464A1 (en) 1993-11-18
WO1992014142A1 (en) 1992-08-20
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JPH06505333A (ja) 1994-06-16
HU220571B1 (hu) 2002-03-28
FI108260B (fi) 2001-12-14
AU655454B2 (en) 1994-12-22
DK17791D0 (da) 1991-02-01
NO932744L (no) 1993-07-30
FI933414A (fi) 1993-07-30
DE69202242T2 (de) 1995-08-31
NO309213B1 (no) 2000-12-27
AU1233492A (en) 1992-09-07
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DK0569464T3 (da) 1995-09-04
FI933414A0 (fi) 1993-07-30

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